This post was contributed by guest author: Nirav Dave

Nirav Dave is the co-founder of ZaraHutke, in Mumbai that specializes in all things Offbeat Stays & Weekend Getaways. He is an Avid traveler, A dedicated husband, and father and loves Numismatics.

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It is no hidden truth that to be smitten by the wanderlust is sheer bliss. The idea of traveling to new places is as thrilling today as it used to be in the olden times. It is after opening up to newer worlds around us that we find the riches that travel brings. Among all the holiday destinations in the world, India is one country that you must explore the sooner you can. An India tour introduces you to such diversity at a vast scale. Every few miles, the landscapes change, the people and their cultures change, the dialect and the language change. So, how do you travel across India? Many would tell you that the flights, and mostly trains, conveniently connect different parts of India together. If you wish to seek the pleasure of being a real traveler, you need to do it on a road trip. Discovering the places and attractions in India on a road trip can be an experience of a lifetime and no wonder. Many foreign travelers find it the best way to explore this country and its marvels. Here are three road trips that would come off as wonderful traveling experiences to cherish for years:

1. Bike all the way from Bangalore to Nandi Hills

South India is the best part to begin your itinerary on the India tour. Lush greenery, modest hills, pleasant climate, cool weather, and friendly people — you get to witness more and more of all this in the southern part of India. Bangalore is the perfect place for domestic travelers as well. So many holiday destinations, treks, etc. around Bangalore make it a gateway point to some interesting places. A road bike trip from Bangalore to Nandi Hills, a course of about 70 km is what you’re looking it. The very thought of it gives the most ardent of travelers an adrenaline push. If you’re traveling in a group, it gets just better. You pass through vineyards, fellow cyclists, joggers, etc. Coming from abroad, most travelers find it convenient to alight at New Delhi International Airport. So, it is a 2-3 hours flight from Delhi to Bangalore if you take up the journey down south. Since Bangalore is well-connected to the national capital, you can anytime book a seat on the Bangalore to Delhi flights and fly back.

2. On the road from Bangalore to Munnar

Munnar is a beautiful place, a Western Ghat town blessed by lush greenery and refreshing breeze. Before you take a boarding in the Bangalore to Delhi flights any sooner, Munnar is where you should be, at least for once. Although you would have to cover a distance of around 500 km on this road trip, the taxi ride can be one reviving experience if you mean to unwind in the proximity of nature. Discover tea plantations are sprawling across miles and miles as you reach Munnar, a sight to behold honestly.

3. Pune to Goa via Kolhapur Highway

It is unnecessary to say that anyone visiting India has to see Goa for once, at the least. Goa is the most affair beach destination for foreigners and residents alike. Most of the travelers alight at the Mumbai airport as a stay in the Bollywood City is the experience to retell countless times. It can easily be deduced from the many mentions Bombay (Today’s Mumbai) got in so many books, one most elucidating example of which is Gregory David Roberts’ novel, Shantaram. So, after you have spent enough time exploring Mumbai and eventually headed toward Pune to find the treasures that lie beyond Mumbai, a trip from Pune to Goa should already be rolling somewhere in the back of your mind. But the road trip is a much better way to go about it than taking flight.

The whole route is as pleasant as your imagination. Rejuvenation is just ahead! These road trips, besides everything else that you explore in India, are going to stay in your memories for a long time indeed. Of course, a holiday stay in cities like Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, etc. and trekking across the Himalayan hills of Himachal and Uttaranchal are the popular itineraries among the tourists. But nothing beats the fun and adventure of a road trip. History is awash with travelers who sooner or later set sail to the far and distant corners of the world.

From Ibn Battuta to Vasco De Gama to Reid Stowe to Michael Palin, the passion for exploring the world as an ardent traveler never faded for such people. As Marcel Proust puts it, “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

So, it is a joy to see the world in many ways. When you are not traveling the experience merely repeats itself. But when you go out to explore new places, the experience renews itself in varied colors. A trip to India gives you just that.

To know the mists of the mountains as well as the summer beaches, to see the dark woods as well as royal mansions, to have met people who speak a language that you do not understand — such dynamic experiences bring a freshness to the soul as you seek the underlying beauty of the unexplored world. Gets you interested? Plan a tour to India soon enough and see the joys that abound in its places, cultures, cuisines, and diversity.